We have spent much of the spring debating whether or not we should change our Electronics Policy. We have weighed the benefits and cons of banning ALL electronics vs. allowing some. After thorough research and relevant conversations, we even inspired an article that has just been released by Bob Ditter! Bob is a well regarded child, adolescent and family therapist from Boston, Massachusetts, and is a nationally recognized trainer and consultant working with organizations that work with young people. Here is Bob’s article:
Plugged or Unplugged: The Benefits of Each at Camp
Reprinted with permission of the author, Bob Ditter. ©2012
I just got off the phone with the very thoughtful and reflective Jamie Cole, one of the owner/directors of Camp Robin Hood in Freedom, New Hampshire. She wanted to know my thoughts about a new policy the camp has been considering for this summer regarding the use of electronics at camp. I say the “thoughtful and reflective” Jamie Cole because she is balanced in her thinking about the issue of electronics at camp. On the one hand, camp is all about community and being with other people, not about “tuning out” by playing electronic games or being distracted by the seductive features of electronics. On the other hand, not all electronics are created equal! As Jamie points out, and as many camp professionals have themselves witnessed, listening to music on a an mp3 player, for example, can have a soothing or calming effect on many children, depending on the type of music being played. In addition, for many children, taking a “break” from the give-and-take of a cabin or group can have a calming effect on them, allowing them to “hold it together” and helping them be more successful when they are more fully engaged with peers.
So the question is, to remain plugged or be unplugged? Let’s look at the arguments, after which I’m going to make two practical suggestions.
One of the arguments about allowing electronics at camp is that children today have become so immersed in electronics that their devices are “like the air they breathe, the water they drink, and the food they eat” (Lewin). Taking all electronics away from campers might actually cause an increase in their anxiety levels in ways that could be detrimental to their adjustment at camp. While this hypothesis would be hard to prove, what is clear from recent research is that the rates of depression and anxiety are between five and eight times higher among children today than fifty years ago (Twenge). According to Peter Gray, anxiety and depression in children increase when they feel they have less control over their lives. With the increased pressures of school, loss of free time, and little time for spontaneous, creative play, Gray points out that the incidence of anxiety and depression in children has risen steadily. I myself have seen increasing numbers of children at camps throughout the United States who simply have no down time during the school week. They run from one scripted activity to the next, getting home to do homework before tumbling into bed, then repeating the entire scene day after day. For these children, having some “down time” at camp can be extremely beneficial, not only to individual campers, but to their peers and their counselors!
At America’s Camp, the camp for the children whose parents were lost in planes and the Twin Towers in the September 11th attacks in New York, directors Jed Dorfman, Jay Toporoff, Danny Metzger, and Beth Griffin had a place for children to “drop in” when they needed downtime or needed to “chill.” Having seen the impact of this “quiet zone” firsthand, where campers could draw, play quiet games, sit on stuffed chairs or even nap with stuffed animals, it was hard to imagine how some of them would have fared at camp without the soothing effect this down time. While electronics were not a part of the offerings in the quiet zone at America’s Camp, they easily could have been. I have a patient in my psychotherapy practice who is diagnosed with attention deficit disorder and who is prone to impulsive outbursts, and he routinely uses his portable video game device as a way of maintaining greater self-control over his moods and behavior. At camp, when he doesn’t have access to the “decompression effect” of his video gaming, he can become annoying and irritating to other campers and staff alike. He has even come close to jeopardizing his ability to remain at camp.
So my first suggestion is that camps seriously consider including an elective activity called “Quiet Time” as a legitimate, non-punitive “time out” for over-scheduled children! It can easily be set up in such a way so it doesn’t become an avoidance of things like clean-up or other duties, or for activity periods campers are simply trying to get out of. As I have noted, for many children, it can be the difference between what allows them to regulate their impulses in such a way as to be able to remain in camp at all. “Quiet Time” also gives staff a break from such children in ways that may allow them to be more patient over the long haul.
The “chill out” room: cards, board games, jacks, stuffed animals, puppets, drawing materials, quiet music options, stuffed chairs, and comfortable places for kids to “chill!”
My second practical suggestion goes back to the question, “To unplug or plug?” What if you let the campers decide? What if campers had to develop a “code of honor and respect” where they laid out all the considerations for behaviors with regard to responsible use of electronics? My experience has always been that when children want something badly enough and they are given the opportunity to create appropriate rules to govern what they want, they rise to the occasion. Each cabin would create an “electronics club,” where maintaining ones status as a “member” in the club (the EC) hinged on keeping the agreements. With help from counselors, it would be very easy to identify that code of conduct. Certainly it would have to address when and where electronics could be used, which would never be as an avoidance of making friends or fulfilling duties in their cabin or group. The games or other content (music, videos, etc.) would have to be appropriate and open to supervision by staff. All members would be required to respect other kids’ property (asking to borrow something FIRST, and accepting “no” for an answer gracefully!). Certain types of electronics might be out of bounds (for example, smart phones or any device that connects to the Internet) because it would take you away from what you came to camp for, which is to be with and make new camp friends.* Violating the agreement in any way means losing your member privileges for a specified period of time.
Giving campers a say in the policies regarding the use of electronics at camp would promote responsible behavior. It gives campers more of a sense of control over their lives at camp and gets them involved in creating reasonable policies and agreed upon consequences. All this happens while providing for the soothing effect limited electronics use can offer without compromising the essential premise of camp — which is to be on your own away from parents, make new friends, and have new experiences. Sounds like a win-win!
References
Gray, P. (2010, January 26). The dramatic rise of anxiety and depression in children and adolescents. Freedom to Learn. Retrieved from www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/201001/the-dramatic-rise-anxiety-and-depression-in-children-and-adolescents-is-it
Lewin, T. (2010, January 20). If your kids are awake, they’re probably online. The New York Times. Retrieved from www.nytimes.com/2010/01/20/education/20wired.html.
Jean Twenge, et al. (2010). Birth cohort increases in psychopathology among young Americans. Clinical Psychology Review, 30, 145-154.
Weir, D. (2011). Unplugging at summer camp: Social skills children develop on- and offline. Student thesis.
*Dan Weir also argues that children never get a break from the social pressures of school like they do at camp because at home they go online and are right back into the social mix!
